The five time Olympic medallist followed up her 91ÌÒÉ« Medal of Honour last week as she topped a poll of Team GB Rio 2016 athletes to clinch the prestigious award.

Katherine Grainger paid tribute to her team mates, friends and family for their support and encouragement upon receiving the award.

“I’ve been part of Team GB for 20 years now and it’s the most fun, inspiring and wonderful team I could imagine”, said Grainger.

“I love being part of a sport where I don’t compete alone and winning medals as part of a team makes it extra special.”

“The great thing for me over the last five Olympic Games is that, as rowers, we finish in the first week so it’s been an absolute pleasure to be the biggest super fan during the second week for the last 20 years.”

Katherine Grainger and Vicki Thornley took the silver medal in the women’s double sculls at Rio 2016.

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In a year that saw the 40th anniversary of women’s rowing joining the Olympic programme, it was fitting that the GB Rowing Team should mark the occasion with three pieces of history at the Rio 2016 Games.

Four years after becoming the first British female rowers to win an Olympic gold medal, the women’s pair of Helen Glover and Heather Stanning became the first to successfully defend their title as they stormed to victory on the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas.

Katie Greves, Melanie Wilson, Frances Houghton, Polly Swann, Jess Eddie, Olivia Carnegie-Brown, Karen Bennett, Zoe Lee and cox Zoe de Toledo became the first GB women’s eight to stand on an Olympic podium after taking silver in a thrilling final.

And Katherine Grainger became Britain’s most decorated female Olympian of all time when she and Vicky Thornley produced a performance of true grit and determination to win silver in the women’s double scull.

That was Grainger’s fifth medal from as many Games, a 16-year period that has contained a number of milestone moments for GB’s women on the Olympic stage.

The silver that Grainger won in the quadruple scull at the Sydney 2000 Games with Gillian Lindsay and the Batten sisters, Guin and Miriam, was a first-ever Olympic medal for British women.

Athens 2004 saw three of the four women’s boats that qualified for the Games come away with a medal. Grainger again won silver, this time in the pair with Cath Bishop; Alison Mowbray, Debbie Flood, Frances Houghton – who is also now a five-time Olympian – and Rebecca Romero matched that achievement in the quad; and Sarah Winckless and Elise Laverick won the first of four successive women’s doubles medals for GB as they took bronze.

Laverick won another bronze in the double at Beijing 2008 with Anna Watkins (nee Bebington), while Grainger again had to settle for silver in the quad along with Annie Vernon, Flood and Houghton.

Grainger’s long-awaited golden moment finally arrived at London 2012 as she won an emotional Olympic title with Watkins in the double. That was the second gold of the regatta for GB’s women, following on from that unforgettable breakthrough success by Glover and Stanning in the pair.

And there was more success to come at Eton Dorney as Kat Copeland and Sophie Hosking secured a first-ever medal for GB’s lightweight women – gold in the double scull to the delight of the home crowd.

Pioneering the way for these achievements were the first British female Olympic rowers back at the Montreal Games in 1976. Linda Clark and Beryl Crockford (nee Mitchell) – who sadly passed away recently – raced in the pair, finishing tenth, while Gillian Webb, Pauline Bird-Hart, Clare Grove, Diana Bishop and cox Pauline Wright were eighth in the coxed four.

All women’s races were over 1km at that stage and it wasn’t until the Seoul Games of 1988 that the racing distance was doubled to match the men’s competition.

The current women’s Olympic programme – pair, eight, single, double, quad and lightweight double – was first established at the Atlanta 1996 Games but there are proposals for it to be expanded in Tokyo 2020 as part of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) drive to implement gender participation equality across all sports.

Forty per cent of the 550 rowers that competed at the Rio 2016 Olympics were female, the highest level yet, and that would increase to 50-50 should the new, gender-balanced Olympic rowing programme be introduced. That will be voted on in February 2017 during an Extraordinary Congress of FISU, World Rowing’s governing body.

The Paralympic Games already has gender participation equality, with two of the four boat classes made up of mixed crews – the legs-trunk-arms mixed coxed four and the trunk-arms mixed double sculls.

The recent Rio 2016 Games saw all four British women rowers return with gold medals after magnificent performances – indeed, including the para-canoeists, every GB woman who competed on the Lagoa that week was crowned as champion.

Pamela Relph became the first woman to successfully defend a Paralympic rowing title as she, Grace Clough, Daniel Brown, James Fox and cox Oliver James claimed mixed coxed four victory in style. She had been joined in the winning boat four years earlier in London by Naomi Riches, David Smith, James Roe and cox Lily van den Broecke.

The two other Rio rowing champions had previously represented their country in other sports – Lauren Rowles, a track athlete until just 18 months before Rio, dominated the TA mixed double sculls final with Laurence Whiteley, while Rachel Morris produced a remarkable surge through the field to win the arm-shoulders women’s single scull.

Morris had been crowned as Paralympic champion in hand-cycling at Beijing 2008, the Games that saw para-rowing make its Paralympics debut and Helene Raynsford make history by winning the first-ever arm-shoulders women’s single scull title. There were also bronze medals that year for Riches and Vicky Hansford in the mixed coxed four alongside Alastair McKean, James Morgan and cox Alan Sherman.

Been inspired by the success of our Olympic and Paralympic women rowers? Click here to find out more about how to get involved in the sport or here for the Women On Water online community.

Find out more about Women’s Sports Week and 91ÌÒÉ« here.

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Stanning, who successfully defended her title as Olympic women’s pair champion with Helen Glover this summer, was named as Female Athlete of the Year ahead of fellow rower Grainger and cyclist Katie Archibald.

Grainger took home the Lifetime Achievement award after becoming Britain’s most decorated female Olympian by winning her fifth medal at Rio 2016, silver in the women’s double with Vicky Thornley.

“It’s genuinely a massive shock,” said Grainger. “It’s not something I predicted, I didn’t see it coming, so I’m genuinely lost for words which is unusual. It’s the most incredible thing to cap off the most incredible year.”

The Sports Awards came at the end of a day of celebration for Scotland’s Olympians, who also took part in a parade through Edinburgh. Karen Bennett and Polly Swann, silver-medallists in the women’s eight, and Alan Sinclair, Olympic men’s pair finalist, were among those receiving a warm reception.

There were also homecoming celebrations for Yorkshire’s Olympic heroes on Wednesday. Triple Olympic Champion Andrew T Hodge was joined by men’s eight crew-mates Paul Bennett and Tom Ransley on an open-top bus parade through Leeds city centre, along with women’s eight silver-medallist Zoe Lee and Paralympic Champions Grace Clough and Laurence Whiteley.

This Saturday will see men’s eight Olympic Champion Matt Langridge receive the Freedom of Northwich after an open-top bus parade through his hometown.

Alex Gregory, Chris Bartley, Will Satch, Frances Houghton, Katie Greves and Paralympians James Fox and Rachel Morris will also be sharing their Rio experiences at the River & Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames from 11am to 4pm that day.

Grainger will be among the Olympians and Paralympians from the Marlow area taking part in a homecoming party at Higginson Park on Sunday. Also attending will be London 2012 Paralympic champion Naomi Riches, who last week became the first woman to row the length of the Thames.

Team GB and ParalympicsGB are staging two national celebrations on October 17 and 18, in Manchester and London respectively. Click here for more information.

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Thornley and Grainger turned an indifferent season into a silver lining today, battling all the way down the course with the Polish favourites only to be outdone in the very dying metres of the race.

The silver was a first for Thornley – and one she will cherish – and a fourth for Grainger since 2000 to add to the gold she won in the same event at London 2012.  The tally makes her Britain’s most decorated female Olympian of all time.

Grainger said of the race and their early lead:  “I don’t think you ever feel like you are going to win but we were ahead and it felt good and then you come down very quickly.  It was certainly a dramatic race”.

Thornley added:  “It was a really great race from us and a silver medal is so nice, I think”.

Earlier the open men’s pair of Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes, and double of Jonny Walton and John Collins produced gutsy performances to finish fourth and fifth respectively. The men’s quad of Jack Beaumont, Sam Townsend, Angus Groom and Peter Lambert also gave everything they had to finish fifth overall – an impressive result after their disrupted build-up to the Games.

Peter Lambert, Angus Groom, Sam Townsend and Jack Beaumont gave their all

Stewart Innes and Alan Sinclair

John Collins and Jonny Walton

Alex Gregory, Mohamed Sbihi, George Nash and Constantine Louloudis produced a dominant performance in their men’s four semi to qualify for tomorrow’s final, leading throughout.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning were equally impressive in their semi, taking an early and big lead before going on to win comfortably.

Will Fletcher and Richard Chambers emptied the tank giving their all in the lightweight men’s double scull semi but could not get into the top three and qualify for tomorrow’s final.

Alan Campbell will race the final GB semi of the programme tomorrow morning in the men’s single scull.  The men’s four and women’s pair will line up for their finals.

Click on the expander boxes below for full race reports, reaction and results.

For further information about this report please contact the GB Rowing Team press officer, Caroline Searle, via comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk OR the phone numbers in the contact box below.

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Rio’s Lagoa was a place of joy for four Team GB rowing crews and a theatre of considerable pain for two others today.

The weather behaved, the water conditions were more favourable and the sun shone as five-times Olympian Katherine Grainger and her 2016 double scull partner, Vicky Thornley, produced a consummate semi-final to reach Thursday’s final in second place behind Poland in an event which saw the World Champions fall by the wayside in the opposing heat.

Thornley said:  “It’s good to come through. Semis are always very tense.  We are now looking forward to Thursday and we know that we can do more and better”.
Grainger added:  “We always said that we would take this regatta one race at a time and we have been doing that.  When it was all over today we both said we could have done better, so that’s promising”.

Two rookie Team GB Olympic crews – the men’s pair and men’s double – also moved into the finals.  Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes, European silver medallists, said that they could improve on their men’s pair heat and they did.  Taking second place today they looked strong in a perfectly paced final that saw them put in a strong middle section.

John Collins said that they knew they would “need to go somewhere they have never been in practice” to come through today’s semi of the men’s double.  They stayed pacey and strong despite pressure from multiple crews to come home third in a race won by the World Champions from Croatia.

Walton added: “We have been working so, so hard for this.  It is amazing to be in the finals.  Finally it’s come together”.
Alan Campbell, four-times an Olympian, is clearly relishing the regatta here.  He was not fazed by the prowess of 2015 European Champion and multiple world cup medal winner Damir Martin in the adjacent lane.

“I focussed on my own race and not the Croatian and it worked”, said the Coleraine man who was second by a comfortable margin over the remainder of the field and now moves to a semi on Thursday.

Chris Bartley, Jono Clegg, Mark Aldred and Peter Chambers fought a tightly-bunched lightweight men’s four semi-final but fell the wrong side of the top three dividing line in the final long sprint to the line as the French and New Zealanders came through behind an eye-catching Italian winning quartet.

“I don’t think we could have done anything more.  We didn’t leave anything out there today”, said Peter Chambers afterwards.  “We were beaten by good crews”.

Bartley added:  “I guess we can be proud that no-one held back. We put everything we had out there today”.

Heartbreak also awaited reigning Olympic Champion Kat Copeland and her new lightweight women’s double partner Charlotte Taylor who are out of the regatta. They raced a repechage this morning but came home third – one place short of qualifying for the semis. In Rio this crew has not looked in the form that took them to World Silver last year.
Taylor said:  “We didn’t have a great start, I think I caught one of the strokes and we got a bit dumped. We came through 750m and I said we needed to really fight for our lives here but we were never really able to close the gap.

“I don’t think it was our best race. I definitely feel like we’ve raced better in the past.

This year we’ve not properly found our gear in any of the races”.

Tomorrow sees the first GB crew in finals action.  The men’s quad race at 10.22 (14.22 Uk time). No British men’s quad has ever won an Olympic medal.

The race programme also includes semi-finals for the women’s pair, lightweight men’s double and men’s four.

For further information about this report please contact the GB Rowing Team press officer, Caroline Searle, via comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk OR the phone numbers in the contact box below.

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Alan Campbell will launch Great Britain’s Olympic rowing campaign this Saturday on Rio’s Estadio de Lagoa at 09.00 Brazilian time (13.00 BST) when he faces opposition from Belarus, Korea, Zimbabwe and Indonesia for a place in Tuesday’s quarter-finals of the open men’s single scull.

The 2012 bronze medal open men’s single sculler, from Coleraine and coached by John West, will lead off a British contingent of 12 boats and 47 rowers in action at these Games at a lake which Team GB Rowing Leader, Sir David Tanner, has described as “one of the iconic venues of the Games”.

Saturday morning’s race-card includes the men’s pair of Alan Sinclair, from Inverness, and Henley’s Stewart Innes, the European silver medal winners (14.40 BST). They have drawn the Dutch crew of Roel Braas and Mitchel Steenman, also multiple medal winners this season, in their opening heat.   A top three finish from the six starters will see them into Tuesday’s semi-finals.

“The guys are excited about racing at their first Games and are fired up because of the support back home”, said their coach Rob Dauncey.

2012 Olympic women’s eight finalist Vicky Thornley, from Wrexham, and five-times Olympian and Glasgow’s defending Olympic champion Katherine Grainger, have a tough opener in the open women’s double scull in which they need a top three placing to progress.

They are drawn to race alongside Lithuania’s 2013 World Champions Donata Vistartaite and Milda Valciukaite in a heat also featuring 2015 World bronze medallists, Germany (15.00 BST).

“It’s a very tasty heat and the women are looking forward to testing themselves”, said coach Paul Thompson.

Leicester’s Jonny Walton and Twickenham’s John Collins will kick off their debut Olympics in a heat of the open men’s double scull, which features current World bronze medallists New Zealand and 2014 silver medallists, Italy (15.30 BST).  A top three finish for the duo, coached by Mark Banks, will see them safely into Tuesday’s semi-finals.

Coleraine’s Peter Chambers and Chester’s Chris Bartley both took silver in the lightweight men’s four in London and return to this boat class in Rio where they race with Olympic first-timers Mark Aldred, from Birmingham and Maidenhead’s Jono Clegg.

In Saturday’s opening heat (16.10 BST) the quartet, who finished the world cup season on a strong note, with world cup bronze in Poland, have drawn 2014 World Champions and 2015 World silver medallists, Denmark.  They also race the Germans whom they beat into fifth place in the final in Poland.   Three crews go through to semi-finals.

‘It will be interesting to see how we run off against the Danes in the opening heat because they are one of the top crews in the world. It will put everyone’s minds at rest to see where we stand”, said coach Hamish Burrell.

Jack Beaumont from Maidenhead has flown out to join the GB men’s quadruple scull crew in the past few days because of illness to Graeme Thomas.  Beaumont, Reading’s Sam Townsend, Glasgow’s Angus Groom, who learnt to row in Guildford, and Henley’s Peter Lambert will close out GB’s first day of racing.

“Australia and Poland are the seeded crews, so it will be a good test”, said coach Paul Stannard of their opening heat (16.40 BST) from which two crews progress to Wednesday’s final and the others to a repechage which provides those crews with a second chance on Monday.

SUNDAY

Sunday’s start-list will see the men’s four, women’s pair and the two lightweight double scull crews in action in their respective opening heats.

Gloucestershire’s defending Olympic Champion Alex Gregory, Surbiton’s Moe Sbihi, George Nash, from Guildford, and Londoner Constantine Louloudis start unbeaten this season in the men’s four. They line up with South Africa, France and Greece in heat three (16.20 BST).

Three crews from each heat will progress to the men’s four semi-finals on Wednesday.  Britain have been Olympic champions in this event at every Games since Sydney 2000.

“Overall the draws are good but there is no easy opposition at Olympic Games level.  We are here to compete and to show how we can perform.  We have prepared well and we are now looking forward to it”, said coach Jurgen Grobler who is coaching at his 11th Olympic Games.

Helen Glover, from Penzance, and Lossiemouth’s Heather Stanning will race a women’s pair heat which includes Denmark and Germany who are both world cup finalists this season (14.10 BST).

Robin Williams, coach to the Olympic, World and European Champion duo, said: “The draw has turned out evenly balanced with the seeded crews missing each other but we have crews in our heats who can race, and race well, so we will be giving them the proper respect”. Three crews progress from this heat.

Tees rower Kat Copeland, like Glover and Stanning, is a defending Olympic Champion. With Putney’s Charlotte Taylor, Copeland won World silver a year ago.

The duo missed the latter part of this season’s world cup racing because of injury but have come through well from two recent good training camps.

Only two crews progress to semi-finals from their heat (14.40 BST). Coach Paul Reedy said:  “We are racing crews that are ranked quite highly so it will be a good first test and we are raring to go”.

Richard Chambers, the elder of the Chambers siblings and a London 2012 lightweight men’s four medallist, races this Games with Games debutant Will Fletcher from Chester-le-Street in the lightweight men’s double scull.

In a somewhat ironic twist the combination, coached by Darren Whiter, are drawn in their heat (15.50 BST) alongside John Thompson and John Smith who were half of South African lightweight four who so narrowly pipped GB to gold in London four years ago.  The top two crews go on to the semi-finals with the remainder to the repechages.

MONDAY

Britain’s two eights open their Games on Monday with heats starting at 10.30 local time (14.30 in the UK).

The men have drawn Holland, Italy and New Zealand.  Germany, the Olympic Champions, are in the other heat.   Scott Durant (Lancaster), Tom Ransley (Ashford), Andrew T Hodge (Hebden), Matt Gotrel (Chipping Campden), Pete Reed (Nailsworth), Paul Bennett (Leeds), Matt Langridge (Northwich), Will Satch (Henley) and Londoner Phelan Hill feature in this line-up.

Christian Felkel, who coaches the eight with Jurgen Grobler, said:  “It was expected that the Germans would be in the other heat because of the seedings. The Dutch, of course, won in Lucerne at the world cup so that will be interesting but we are not worried and we can’t wait to get going”.

The GB European Champion women’s eight are drawn with Canada and New Zealand.

James Harris, coach of the European Champion women’s eight with Paul Thompson, said:  “The seeding meant that we would always face New Zealand in the heats. We’ve traded results with them this season and the Canadians, of course, are the World bronze medallists from last year so it’s going to be a good three-boat fight”.  Only one crew can progress directly to the final, the other two will have a second chance via the repechage.

Katie Greves (Oxford), Melanie Wilson (London) Frances Houghton (Oxford), Polly Swann (Edinburgh), Jess Eddie (Durham), Olivia Carnegie-Brown (Reading), Karen Bennett (Edinburgh), Zoe Lee (Richmond) and cox Zoe de Toledo (London) will race at 10.40 Brazilian time (14.40 in the UK) with the men in action 20 minutes later.

Click here for a full guide to the Games

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Helen Glover and Heather Stanning were announced in the women’s pair in which they are the reigning Olympic, World and European Champions.

Glover said:  “It’s always fantastic to be selected to represent Great Britain, and never more so than in Olympic year. The European Championships are our first opportunity to test our early season speed against international competition.”

And one of the strongest open men’s sweep* rowing squads in the world has been deployed across the men’s eight and four, as well as a new-look men’s pair, for the event which takes place in Brandenburg, Germany from May 6-8.

Sir David Tanner, GB Rowing Team Performance Director, said: “We are clearly ambitious to do well in Rio and will race and then review the Europeans combinations announced today. We will also enter six crews for the Varese World Cup regatta in ten days’ time.”

Double Olympic men’s four champions Pete Reed and Andrew T Hodge have been selected into the men’s eight in a line-up which includes Scott Durant and 2012 men’s eight medallist Matt Langridge alongside multiple World Champions Paul Bennett, Matt Gotrel, Tom Ransley, stroke Will Satch and cox Phelan Hill. Ransley, Satch and Hill are also 2012 medallists.

Alex Gregory, 2012 gold medallist in the four, returns to that boat and races with his Trials winning partner, Mohamed Sbihi, plus George Nash and stroke Constantine Louloudis. The quartet are all reigning World Champions in the men’s eight.

Gregory said:  “Everything we do aims towards the Olympics and now finally we are starting to form the crews that will make up the Olympic team. With the European Championships as the first test, I can’t wait to get the 2016 racing season underway. It’s a privilege to race for our country and the feeling of pride and excitement never diminishes.”

Having laid down a strong marker with a top-four finish at the recent GB Trials, Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes are named as the men’s pair.

It is the first major step conquered on the way to fulfilling my dream of competing in my fifth Olympic Games – Frances Houghton

Relative rookie Angus Groom has forced his way into the open men’s quadruple scull* in the absence of the injured Charles Cousins, to join 2013 and 2014 World medallists Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas and Peter Lambert.

Lambert said:  “I am extremely happy with my selection for the Europeans. This regatta is an exciting start to our Olympic season. The men’s quad at the Europeans is an extremely high competition. Out of the eight crews that qualified last year for the Olympics, seven of them are European countries. We are looking forward to it.”

2012 bronze medallist Alan Campbell, whose Trials’ win showed that he is back on form, races the single scull and Jonny Walton and John Collins, contest the double scull – they qualified that boat for Rio at last year’s World Championships.

Four-times Olympic medallist Katherine Grainger is named in the open women’s double scull with Trials winner Vicky Thornley in a reprise of their 2015 partnership which finished its debut season with a place in the World final.

Like Grainger, Frances Houghton, will race a fifth Olympic Games if selected later this summer for Rio.  She has switched from sculling to sweep rowing and has won a seat in the women’s eight that came so close to winning a medal at last year’s World Championships.

Grainger said:  “The idea of ever competing at the Olympic Games was once just a dream and so it was incredible when I made the team in 2000. Now 16 years on and looking to my fifth Games I still have the same excitement I did back then, it’s the most amazing event to be part of and that doesn’t change whether it’s the first time or the fifth.”

Houghton said:  “I feel almost overwhelmed to be selected for the European Championships in the women’s eight. It is the first major step conquered on the way to fulfilling my dream of competing in my fifth Olympic Games.

“It has at times seemed like an insurmountable mountain to climb and now it is just sinking in that all the hard work and deep belief in the darkest of times of illness and injury has paid off.”

Olympians Jess Eddie, Katie Greves and Melanie Wilson as well as 2013 World pair champion Polly Swann, back after a year out with injury, will be joined in the line-up by Zoe Lee, Karen Bennett, Olivia Carnegie-Brown and cox Zoe de Toledo.

It’s a privilege to race for our country and the feeling of pride and excitement never diminishes – Alex Gregory

World silver medallists Kat Copeland and Charlotte Taylor will once more race the lightweight women’s double scull having taken the top two spots at the Trials from a strongly contested lightweight sculling group. Imogen Walsh, therefore, races the single in which she won World silver in 2015.

Richard Chambers is on his way back after a recent hand injury and will race the lightweight men’s double, if fully fit, with Will Fletcher. Just like Olympic Champion Copeland and Taylor, they won World silver last year in their debut season together.

Further post-Trials testing was needed to establish the crews for the lightweight men’s sweep boats.  2012 silver medallists Peter Chambers and Chris Bartley have made the cut and will be joined by Mark Aldred and Jono Clegg, both now experienced internationals.  Sam Scrimgeour and Joel Cassells are GB’s choice in the pair. They won World gold last year.

Jamie Kirkwood, a World finalist last year, takes up the GB slot in the lightweight men’s single once more.

91ÌÒÉ« will also race six crews at the Varese World Cup from April 15-17, including the women’s quadruple scull, announced in the European squad today as Holly Nixon, Jess Leyden, Tina Stiller and Rosamund Bradbury as the campaign begins to qualify this boat for Rio.

Click the expander ‘Crew List’ box below to see the squad in full.

*Sweep = one rower, one oar / Scull = one rower, two sculls

RACING TIMETABLE – 2016 European Championships, Brandenburg, Germany

• Friday 6 May – all heats a.m.; some repechages p.m.
• Saturday 7 May – All further repechages and semi-finals.
• Sunday 8 May – All finals (09.33 – 13.33 UK Time).

GB ROWING TEAM MEDALISTS – 2015 European Championships, Poznan, Poland

Gold:

• Women’s pair – Helen Glover, Heather Stanning.
• Men’s pair – James Foad, Matt Langridge.
• Men’s four – Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell, Alan Sinclair, Tom Ransley, Scott Durant.
• Lightweight women’s single scull – Imogen Walsh.
• Lightweight women’s double scull – Charlotte Taylor, Kat Copeland.
• Lightweight men’s pair – Joel Cassells, Peter Chambers.

Silver:

• Men’s eight – Matt Gotrel, Stewart Innes, Pete Reed, Paul Bennett, Moe Sbihi, Alex Gregory, George Nash, Will Satch, Phelan Hill (cox).
• Lightweight men’s double scull – Richard Chambers, Will Fletcher.

Bronze:

• Women’s double scull – Vicky Thornley, Katherine Grainger.
• Men’s quadruple scull – Jack Beaumont, Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas, Peter Lambert.

The post European selections point to aiming high at Rio Olympics appeared first on 91ÌÒÉ«.

“There are some very big calls to come in the next few weeks and I try not to think about it,” said Paul Bennett, World Champion in the men’s eight, of this week’s GB Rowing Team Olympic-season trials.

“Everyone here does the same training, we have all worked hard to support each other but some people will not make it.  That’s horrible to think about so I try not to think about it.”

With 115 rowers in action and only 48 Rio seats available later this year and European Championships places at stake in early May, these Trials will be demanding.

17 Olympic medallists and 10 World Champions will be amongst those racing tomorrow and Wednesday.

Sir David Tanner, 91ÌÒɫ’s Performance Director, said: “This is the event when we test the rowers under pressure in pairs and singles to see who has got what it takes to win.  The tension is never greater than in Olympic year.”

Bennett will be racing with Matt Gotrel in a “stacked” men’s pair field.  GB has won the men’s eight at the World Championships three times since 2013 and 12 of the rowers involved in those wins will be on Tuesday’s start line in the men’s pair.

Olympic Champion Alex Gregory and Mohamed Sbihi are tipped to take a hat-trick of titles since 2014 and victory for Sbihi would be his fourth consecutive win at this event.

Gregory said:  “I would definitely like to keep hold of the title but the racing has got closer and closer over the years and the standard has increased. It’s going to be tough to protect that record.

“We know there or thereabouts where we are in the squad but, from our point of view as athletes, this week can be make or break and the pressure is on.”

Other top pairings include double Olympic Champion Pete Reed and 2012 bronze medallist Constantine Louloudis as well as George Nash and Will Satch who were bronze medallists in the pair at the 2012 Games.

Louloudis said:  “I feel pretty good. We’ve just been on a good training camp and I think the whole team is well prepared but Pete and I have been going pretty well in our pair and I think we’ll do well at the Trials.

“We are conscious, coming into the Trials, that it is more individual now. We are all assessing our own chances looking ahead to selection.”

Double Olympic Champion Andrew T Hodge and Matt Langridge could also be a pair to watch. World silver medallist Langridge is more used to racing with James Foad, who is out recovering from back surgery, whilst Hodge is on the way back after illness.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning are stand-out favourites to win the women’s pair event. The duo hold the Olympic, World and European titles although Jess Eddie and Polly Swann – the latter a World Champion with Glover in 2013 – could run them close as they did in 2014.

Singular “single” and women’s sweep battles in store

Perhaps more intriguing could be the battle for top honours in the open men’s single scull.

Angus Groom won the December assessment. The young Scot is making his mark after joining the senior squad from the ranks of the U23 World medallists. John Collins, from the 2015 double scull, has also been in good form in recent training.

With Charles Cousins absent through injury, 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Alan Campbell should feel he has a chance to extend his remarkable trials record to nine overall wins.  He won eight titles consecutively from 2005-2012 before Cousins took over the mantle.

Campbell said:  “For myself, this would be my fourth Olympics and I would say every one has been tougher than before. This is definitely the toughest group I have been in and I’m having to race and push myself very hard to come up to the standard required to get into this Olympic team.”

2013 and 2014 World quadruple scull medallists Pete Lambert, Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas as well as Groom’s erstwhile World U23 medal team-mate Jack Beaumont, who is back on track after last summer’s serious injury, and 2015 double-sculler Jonny Walton are also in the mix and the whole group has everything to play for.

Collins said:  “The trials feel very early. In a way, it’s another box to be ticked but it is the biggest box of all. It’s so important. When the time comes to perform, you have to do the business. You have to step up when it really matters, that’s something you can’t assess on a day-to-day basis.”

At these trials only 2012 Olympic gold medallist Andrew T Hodge can equal the 10 titles won to date by Katherine Grainger, who sits out this week as she is recovering from a minor niggle, leaving Vicky Thornley the favourite to win the open women’s single.

Thornley said:  “It will be good to get racing again. Trials are always a bit nerve-wracking but I am looking forward to getting out there.”

Frances Houghton, a 2008 Olympic silver medallist and multiple winner of these trials in the single, has swapped into a competitive “sweep” group seeking seats in the Rio-qualified women’s eight.

She will race with Olivia Carnegie Brown, who came into the national squad through GB Rowing Team Start – a talent identification and fast-track development programme which identified up to 33% of all London 2012 medallists and provided 49% of the team at those Games.

Houghton said:  “I’m just trying to get through the Trials, if I’m at the Europeans and Olympics afterwards that would be great. I’m not thinking about anything else at the moment. Getting selected is the most important thing and I’ll think about Rio if and when it comes.

“I’ve changed from sculling to sweep, so it’s a really big challenge but it’s exciting. It’s going to be very close at the Trials.”

The women’s sweep field includes, amongst other contenders, Olympian Eddie and former World Champion Polly Swann, Louisa Reeve and Ro Bradbury, Melanie Wilson and Karen Bennett as well as Donna Etiebet and Vicki Meyer-Laker. Zoe Lee has today been withdrawn on medical grounds, which means that her pairs partner Katie Greves now transfers to the single.

Etiebet said: “It’s exciting. There are lots of pairs, much more than last year, which makes the competition that much fiercer but ultimately that is really good for the sweep crew, it’s getting more out of everybody.”

Eddie also summed up the mood in the squad when she said recently:  “The focus right now is purely on selection, that is the big thing weighing on people’s minds.  It’s pretty intense but it’s in our own hands.  If we’re good enough we’ll be in the boat, if we’re not we’ll, miss out.”

Seriously heavy competition for the lightweight titles

Last season’s finals session was marked by a sizzling finale to the lightweight women’s single scull when Olympic Champion Kat Copeland was eased out in a three-boat photo-finish by Imogen Walsh and, then rookie, Charlotte Taylor.

Taylor and Copeland went on to race in the lightweight double for GB in the ensuing season and won World silver in Aiguebelette, France, and Walsh won World silver in the single.

Outside of this triumvirate a new wave of talented lightweights continues to emerge including previous World U23 medallists Brianna Stubbs and Ellie Piggott.

Stubbs talked of the strength in depth of the lightweight women’s squad when she said:  “Everyone knows roughly how well everyone else is doing in training but you just have to leave that behind you when you sit on the start line.

“I have so much respect for everyone I train with, I see how hard they have all been working and the standard of the group is probably the best and deepest of any lightweight women’s squad in the world. Seven of us won silver medals at the last World Championships and it is a privilege to be part of that. All I can do is my best on the day and see where that puts me”.

This week’s trials will feature both a single and a pairs event for the lightweight men as selection is honed down to the two Olympic boats – the light four and double.

Richard Chambers and Will Fletcher won World silver in the double last September. Fletcher remains a strong contender for this week’s light single title alongside twice previous winner Jamie Kirkwood and Zak Lee-Green but Chambers has a hand injury which will keep him on the sidelines.

Fletcher said:  “This is it, the final test to show our winter’s work and to prove ourselves. There are only a handful of seats in the Olympic boats and you want to make sure you are in one.

“It is pretty stressful. We are all mates and we are about to race against each other for a place at the Olympics.”

Kirkwood said:  “I’m looking forward to it, there should be some good, fierce racing. I’m hoping to defend my title in the single. No doubt it will be very tough but I will give it my best shot.”

In the pairs event Joel Cassells – from the same town, Coleraine, as 2012 Olympic medallists Alan Campbell, Peter and Richard Chambers – will seek to impress in his continuing rise from recent student rowing days.

He races with Peter Chambers in what looks likely to be a small but tight event with World lightweight men’s pair Champions Sam Scrimgeour and Jonno Clegg as well as previous World medallists Mark Aldred and Chris Bartley racing against relative newcomers like Jamie Copus, Sam Mottram and Charles Waite Roberts.

Four coxes are also amongst those attending the invitation-only event. They are Phelan Hill, Henry Fieldman, Zoe de Toledo and Matilda Horn.

· The GB Rowing Team is supported by the Lottery through UK Sport and has Science in Sport as a supplier.  SAS Analytics is the Official Analytics Partner of 91ÌÒÉ« and the GB Rowing Team. Follow Britain’s rowers on the Road to Rio via Twitter – @GBRowingTeam – and at www.facebook.com/GBRowingTeam.

===========================================

RACING TIMETABLE

Racing will take place as follows:

Time-trials (heats) – 09.45 – 11.00 on Tuesday 22 March

Semi-finals – 15.00 – 16.25 on Tuesday 22 March (first A/B semi at 15.22)

Finals – 10.00 – 12.00 Wednesday 23 March

All times of racing are subject to the weather and members of the media should check with the press officer on 07831 755351 before travelling to the event, particularly if there are high winds.

Any updates to schedules will be posted on twitter:  @GBRowingTeam and on Facebook:  www.facebook.com/gbrowingteam

===========================================

ENTRY LIST

(As at Monday 21 March) Pairs listed from bow to stroke,

* denotes U23

OPEN

MEN

Single

Tom Barras (Leander Club/Staines/07.01.94)* MED – withdrawn

Jack Beaumont (Leander Club/Maidenhead/21.11.93)

Alan Campbell (Tideway Scullers School/Coleraine/09.05.83)

Frazier Christie (Leander Club/Bath/11.01.93)

John Collins (Leander Club/Whitton/24.01.89)

Angus Groom (Leander Club/Glasgow/16.06.92)

Peter Lambert (Leander Club/Maidenhead/03.12.86)

Rowan Law (Leander Club/Nottingham/01.12.96)*

Harry Leask (Leander Club/Edinburgh/16.10.95)*

Nick Middleton (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/12.08.88)

George Stewart (Molesey BC/Esher/14.04.95)*

Jon Stimpson (Nottingham RC/Gex, France/18.07.90)

Graeme Thomas (Agecroft RC/Preston/08.11.88)

Sam Townsend (Reading Univ BC/Reading/26.11.85)

Sam Twine (Reading Univ BC/Tavistock/06.01.94)*

Jonny Walton (Leander Club/Leicester/06.10.90)

Pair

Chris Boddy (Leander Club/Thornaby-on-Tees/16.11.87)/Thomas Ford (Leander Club/Holmes Chapel/03.10.92)

Timothy Clarke (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/07.04.91)/Phil Congdon (Leander Club/Bury St Edmunds/06.06.89)

Oliver Cook (Univ of London BC/Windsor/05.06.90)/Callum McBrierty (Leander Club/Edinburgh/13.08.92)

Rory Gibbs (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Lane End/03.04.94)*/Matthew Aldridge (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Christchurch/11.03.96)*

Alex Gregory (Leander Club/Wormington/11.03.84)/Mohamed Sbihi (Molesey BC/Surbiton/27.03.88)

Michael Glover (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Burnham/03.06.95)* /Morgan Bolding (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Withiel/13.05.95)*

Matt Gotrel (Leander Club/Chipping Campden/01.03.89)/Paul Bennett (Univ of London BC/Leeds/16.12.88)

Matt Langridge (Leander Club/Northwich/20.05.83)/Andrew T Hodge (Molesey BC/Hebden/03.03.79)

Luke Moon (Molesey BC/Deal/25.03.93)/Chris Heywood (Molesey BC/Ascot/29.05.94)*

George Nash (Molesey BC/Guildford/02.10.89)/Will Satch (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/09.06.89)

Adam Neill (Leander Club/Peterborough/29.05.90)/Cameron Buchan (Leander Club/Dunipace/03.12.92)

Tom Ransley (Leander Club/Ashford/06.09.85)/Scott Durant (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Lancaster/12.02.88)

Pete Reed (Leander Club/Nailsworth/27.07.81)/Constantine Louloudis (Oxford Univ BC/London/15.09.91)

Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell (Univ of London BC/Durham/13.04.88)/Matthew Tarrant (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Shepperton/11.07.90)

George Rossiter (Leander Club/Newbury/09.03.92)/Barnaby Stentiford (Leander Club/Ippleden/06.02.91)

James Rudkin (Newcastle Univ BC/Northampton/07.07.94)*/Lewis McCue (Robert Gordon Uni/Aberdeen/26.12.94)*

Alan Sinclair (Leander Club/Inverness/16.10.85)/Stewart Innes (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/20.05.91)

William Warr (Leander Club/Tunbridge Wells/12.03.92)/Matt Rossiter (Leander Club/Newbury/25.09.89)

WOMEN

Single

Emily Carmichael (Leander Club/Cheltenham/29.05.92)

Sam Courty (Reading RC/Alnwick/07.01.93)

Debbie Flood (Leander Club/Guiseley/27.02.80) MED – withdrawn

Georgia Francis (Imperial College BC/Newbury/18.08.94)*

Katherine Grainger (St Andrew BC/Glasgow/12.11.75) (injured) MED  – withdrawn

Lucinda Gooderham (Leander Club/Garboldisham/09.06.84)

Katie Greves (Leander Club/Oxford/02.09.82)

Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne (Reading Univ BC/Hereford/01.10.94)*

Jessica Leyden (Leander Club/Todmorden/22.02.95)

Holly Nixon (Leander Club/Enniskillen/07.12.93

Tina Stiller (Tees RC/Yarm/23.06.87)

Victoria Thornley (Leander Club/Wrexham/30.11.87)

Melissa Wilson (Cambridge Univ BC/Edinburgh/10.06.93) MED – withdrawn.

Pair

Karen Bennett (Leander Club/Edinburgh/05.02.89)/ Melanie Wilson (Imperial College BC/London/25.06.84)

Rosamund Bradbury (Leander Club/Banstead/17.12.88)/Louisa Reeve (Leander Club/London/16.05.84)

Beth Bryan (Tees RC/Stockton-on-Tees/23.04.93)/Jo Wratten (Tees RC/Middlesbrough/23.03.92)

Rebecca Chin (Agecroft RC/Deganwy/11.12.91)/Caragh McMurtry (Southampton Coalporters/Southampton/22.08.91)

Jess Eddie (London RC/Durham/07.10.84)/Polly Swann (Leander Club/Edinburgh/05.06.88)

Fiona Gammond (Leander Club/Bicester/19.10.92)/Holly Norton (Leander Club/Johannesburg, SA/01.01.93)

Helen Glover (Minerva Bath RC/Penzance/17.06.86)/ Heather Stanning (Army RC/Lossiemouth/26.01.85)

Zoe Lee (Imperial College BC/Richmond/15.12.85) MED – Withdrawn

Frances Houghton (Univ of London Tyrian Club/Oxford/19.09.80)/Olivia Carnegie-Brown (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Henley-on-Thames/28.03.91)

Vicki Meyer-Laker (Leander Club/Premnay/18.03.88)/Donna Etiebet (Imperial College BC/London/29.04.86)

LIGHTWEIGHT

MEN

Single

Richard Chambers (Leander Club/Coleraine/10.06.85) (injured) MED – Withdrawn

Will Fletcher (Leander Club/Chester-le-Street/24.12.89)

John Hale (Imperial College BC/Cambridge/28.02.88)

Jonathan Jackson (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/02.06.95)*

Jamie Kirkwood (Leander Club/Newcastle/30.08.89)

Zak Lee-Green (Agecroft RC/Cardiff/06.02.91)

Samuel Mottram (Leander Club/Stoke Mandeville/14.11.94)*

Sam Tuck (Molesey BC/Peterborough/26.07.93)

Pair

Chris Bartley (Leander Club/Wrexham/02.02.84)/Mark Aldred (London RC/Birmingham/18/04.87)

Joel Cassells (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Coleraine/15.06.94)*/Peter Chambers (Oxford Brookes Univ/Coleraine/14.03.90)

Sam Scrimgeour (Imperial College BC/Kirriemuir/28.01.88)/Jonathan Clegg (Leander Club/Maidenhead/14.07.89)

Charles Waite-Roberts (Leander Club/Basingstoke/06.11.92)/Jamie Copus (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Oxford/30.01.93)

WOMEN

Single

Maddie Arlett (Edinburgh Univ BC/Selkirk/07.06.94)*

Kat Copeland (Tees RC/Stockton-on-Tees/01.12.90)

Emily Craig (Univ of London BC/Mark Cross/30.11.92)

Gemma Hall (Wallingford RC/Wargrave/10.04.92) MED – withdrawn

Robyn Hart-Winks (Edinburgh Univ BC/Kirriemuir/07.10.93)

Ellie Lewis (Agecroft RC/Marlow/14.04.94)

Eleanor Piggott (Wallingford RC/Bedford/16.05.91)

Fran Rawlins (Leander Club/Uckfield/08.07.86)

Brianna Stubbs (Wallingford RC/Poole/13.07.91)

Charlotte Taylor (Putney Town RC/Bedford/14.08.85)

Imogen Walsh (London RC/Inverness/17.01.84)

COXES

MEN

Henry Fieldman (Molesey BC/Barnes/25.11.88)

Phelan Hill (Leander Club/Bedford/21.07.79)

WOMEN

Zoe De Toledo (Leander Club/London/17.07.87)

Matilda Horn (Univ of London BC/Windsor/16.

·      The GB Rowing Team is supported by the Lottery through UK Sport and has Science in Sport as a supplier.  SAS Analytics is the Official Analytics Partner of 91ÌÒÉ« and the GB Rowing Team. Follow Britain’s rowers on the Road to Rio via Twitter – @GBRowingTeam – and at www.facebook.com/GBRowingTeam.

The post Some “big calls” to come at Trials appeared first on 91ÌÒÉ«.

115 rowers are set to go to the start line of next week’s Olympic-season GB Rowing Team trials with just 48 Rio places on offer later this summer and earlier seats to be won at the European Championships.

The announcement of the crews for the European Championships will take place on April 6.

Sir David Tanner, 91ÌÒɫ’s Performance Director said: “This is the event when we test the rowers under pressure in pairs and singles to see who has got what it takes to win.  The tension is never greater than in Olympic year.”

The field for next week’s (Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23) men’s pair event will be headed by names like Alex Gregory, Mohamed Sbihi, George Nash, Will Satch, Pete Reed, Andrew T Hodge and Constantine Louloudis who are all Olympic medallists, three of them Olympic Champions.

Gregory and Sbihi are tipped to take a hat-trick of titles since 2014 and, for Sbihi, victory would mean a fourth consecutive victory at this event.

World men’s eight Champions Paul Bennett and Matt Gotrel will also have eyes on the prize of a top seat for 2016.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning are stand-out favourites to win the women’s pair event. The duo hold the Olympic, World and European titles although Jess Eddie and Polly Swann – the latter a World Champion with Glover in 2013 – could run them close as they did in 2014.

Singular “single” and women’s sweep battles in store

Perhaps more intriguing could be the battle for top honours in the open men’s single scull.

Angus Groom won the December assessment. The young Scot is making his mark after joining the senior squad from the ranks of the U23 World medallists.

With Charles Cousins absent through injury, 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Alan Campbell should feel he has a chance to extend his remarkable trials record to nine overall wins.  He won eight titles consecutively from 2005-2012 before Cousins took over the mantle.

2013 and 2014 World quadruple scull medallists Pete Lambert, Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas as well as Groom’s erstwhile World U23 medal team-mate Jack Beaumont, who is back on track after last summer’s serious injury, and 2015 double-scullers Jonny Walton and John Collins are also in the mix.

At these trials only 2012 Olympic gold medallist Andrew T Hodge, racing next week in the men’s pair with reigning World pairs silver medallist Matt Langridge, can equal the 10 titles won to date by Katherine Grainger who sits out next week as she is recovering from a minor niggle, leaving Vicky Thornley the favourite to win the open women’s single.

Frances Houghton, a 2008 Olympic silver medallist and previous, multiple winner of these trials in the single, has swapped into a competitive “sweep” group seeking seats in the Rio-qualified women’s eight.

This includes, amongst other contenders, Olympians Eddie and Swann, Katie Greves, Louisa Reeve and Melanie Wilson as well as Donna Etiebet, Ro Bradbury, Olivia Carnegie-Brown and Zoe Lee.

Eddie summed up the mood in the squad when she said recently:  “The focus right now is purely on selection, that is the big thing weighing on people’s minds.  It’s pretty intense but it’s in our own hands.  If we’re good enough we’ll be in the boat, if we’re not we’ll, miss out.”

Seriously heavy competition for the lightweight titles

Last season’s finals session was marked by a sizzling finale to the lightweight women’s single scull when Olympic Champion Kat Copeland was eased out in a three-boat photo-finish by Imogen Walsh and, then rookie, Charlotte Taylor.

Taylor and Copeland went on to race in the lightweight double for GB in the ensuing season and won World silver in Aiguebelette, France, and Walsh won World silver in the single.

Outside of this triumvirate a new wave of talented lightweights continues to emerge including previous World U23 medallists Brianna Stubbs and Ellie Piggott.

Next week’s trials will feature both a single and a pairs event for the lightweight men as selection is honed down to the two Olympic boats – the light four and double.

Richard Chambers and Will Fletcher won World silver in the double last September.  Fletcher remains a strong contender for next week’s light single title alongside twice previous winner Jamie Kirkwood and Zak Lee Green but Chambers has a hand injury which will keep him on the sidelines.

In the pairs event Joel Cassells, from the same town – Coleraine –  as 2012 Olympic medallists Alan Campbell, Peter and Richard Chambers – will seek to impress in his continuing rise from recent student rowing days.

This will be a small but tight event with Peter Chambers, Mark Aldred, Chris Bartley, Jonno Clegg and Sam Scrimgeour all with senior medal experience racing against relative newcomers like Jamie Copus and Sam Mottram.

Four coxes are also amongst those attending the invitation only event. They are Phelan Hill, Henry Fieldman, Zoe de Toledo and Matilda Horn.

==================================================

RACING TIMETABLE

Racing will take place as follows:

Time-trials (heats) – 09.45 – 11.00 on Tuesday 22 March

Semi-finals – 15.00 – 16.25 on Tuesday 22 March

Finals – 10.00 – 12.30 Wednesday 23 March

All times of racing are subject to the weather and members of the media who are attending the event should check with the press officer on 07831 755351 or comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk before travelling to the event, particularly if there are high winds.

Any updates to schedules will be posted on twitter:  @GBRowingTeam and on Facebook:  www.facebook.com/gbrowingteam

ENTRY LIST

(As at Thursday 17 March)

* denotes U23

OPEN

MEN

SINGLE

Tom Barras (Leander Club/Staines/07.01.94)*

Jack Beaumont (Leander Club/Maidenhead/21.11.93)

Alan Campbell (Tideway Scullers School/Coleraine/09.05.83)

Frazier Christie (Leander Club/Bath/11.01.93)

John Collins (Leander Club/Whitton/24.01.89)

Angus Groom (Leander Club/Glasgow/16.06.92)

Peter Lambert (Leander Club/Maidenhead/03.12.86)

Rowan Law (Leander Club/Nottingham/01.12.96)*

Harry Leask (Leander Club/Edinburgh/16.10.95)*

Nick Middleton (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/12.08.88)

George Stewart (Molesey BC/Esher/14.04.95)*

Jon Stimpson (Nottingham RC/Gex, France/18.07.90)

Graeme Thomas (Agecroft RC/Preston/08.11.88)

Sam Townsend (Reading Univ BC/Reading/26.11.85)

Sam Twine (Reading Univ BC/Tavistock/06.01.94)*

Jonny Walton (Leander Club/Leicester/06.10.90)

PAIR

Bowside

Chris Boddy (Leander Club/Thornaby-on-Tees/16.11.87)

Cameron Buchan (Leander Club/Dunipace/03.12.92)

Timothy Clarke (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/07.04.91)

Oliver Cook (Univ of London BC/Windsor/05.06.90)

Rory Gibbs (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Lane End/03.04.94)*

Michael Glover (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Burnham/03.06.95)*

Matt Gotrel (Leander Club/Chipping Campden/01.03.89)

Matt Langridge (Leander Club/Northwich/20.05.83)

Luke Moon (Molesey BC/Deal/25.03.93)

George Nash (Molesey BC/Guildford/02.10.89)

Tom Ransley (Leander Club/Ashford/06.09.85)

Pete Reed (Leander Club/Nailsworth/27.07.81)

James Rudkin (Newcastle Univ BC/Northampton/07.07.94)*

Mohamed Sbihi (Molesey BC/Surbiton/27.03.88)

Alan Sinclair (Leander Club/Inverness/16.10.85)

Barnaby Stentiford (Leander Club/Ippleden/06.02.91)

Matthew Tarrant (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Shepperton/11.07.90)

William Warr (Leander Club/Tunbridge Wells/12.03.92)

Strokeside

Matthew Aldridge (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Christchurch/11.03.96)*

Paul Bennett (Univ of London BC/Leeds/16.12.88)

Morgan Bolding (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Withiel/13.05.95)*

Phil Congdon (Leander Club/Bury St Edmunds/06.06.89)

Scott Durant (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Lancaster/12.02.88)

Thomas Ford (Leander Club/Holmes Chapel/03.10.92)

Alex Gregory (Leander Club/Wormington/11.03.84)

Chris Heywood (Molesey BC/Ascot/29.05.94)*

Andrew T Hodge (Molesey BC/Hebden/03.03.79)

Stewart Innes (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/20.05.91)

Constantine Louloudis (Oxford Univ BC/London/15.09.91)

Callum McBrierty (Leander Club/Edinburgh/13.08.92)

Lewis McCue (Robert Gordon Uni/Aberdeen/26.12.94)*

Adam Neill (Leander Club/Peterborough/29.05.90)

Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell (Univ of London BC/Durham/13.04.88)

George Rossiter (Leander Club/Newbury/09.03.92)

Matt Rossiter (Leander Club/Newbury/25.09.89)

Will Satch (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/09.06.89)

OPEN

WOMEN

SINGLE

Emily Carmichael (Leander Club/Cheltenham/29.05.92)

Sam Courty (Reading RC/Alnwick/07.01.93)

Debbie Flood (Leander Club/Guiseley/27.02.80)

Georgia Francis (Imperial College BC/Newbury/18.08.94)*

Katherine Grainger (St Andrew BC/Glasgow/12.11.75) (injured)

Lucinda Gooderham (Leander Club/Garboldisham/09.06.84)

Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne (Reading Univ BC/Hereford/01.10.94)*

Jessica Leyden (Leander Club/Todmorden/22.02.95)

Holly Nixon (Leander Club/Enniskillen/07.12.93

Tina Stiller (Tees RC/Yarm/23.06.87)

Victoria Thornley (Leander Club/Wrexham/30.11.87)

Melissa Wilson (Cambridge Univ BC/Edinburgh/10.06.93)

PAIR

Bowside

Karen Bennett (Leander Club/Edinburgh/05.02.89)

Rosamund Bradbury (Leander Club/Banstead/17.12.88)

Beth Bryan (Tees RC/Stockton-on-Tees/23.04.93)

Jess Eddie (London RC/Durham/07.10.84)

Fiona Gammond (Leander Club/Bicester/19.10.92)

Helen Glover (Minerva Bath RC/Penzance/17.06.86)

Katie Greves (Leander Club/Oxford/02.09.82)

Frances Houghton (Univ of London Tyrian Club/Oxford/19.09.80)

Caragh McMurtry (Southampton Coalporters/Southampton/22.08.91)

Vicki Meyer-Laker (Leander Club/Premnay/18.03.88)

Strokeside

Olivia Carnegie-Brown (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Henley-on-Thames/28.03.91)

Rebecca Chin (Agecroft RC/Deganwy/11.12.91)

Donna Etiebet (Imperial College BC/London/29.04.86)

Zoe Lee (Imperial College BC/Richmond/15.12.85)

Holly Norton (Leander Club/Johannesburg, SA/01.01.93)

Louisa Reeve (Leander Club/London/16.05.84)

Heather Stanning (Army RC/Lossiemouth/26.01.85)

Polly Swann (Leander Club/Edinburgh/05.06.88)

Melanie Wilson (Imperial College BC/London/25.06.84)

Jo Wratten (Tees RC/Middlesbrough/23.03.92)

LIGHTWEIGHT

MEN

SINGLE

Richard Chambers (Leander Club/Coleraine/10.06.85) (injured)

Will Fletcher (Leander Club/Chester-le-Street/24.12.89)

John Hale (Imperial College BC/Cambridge/28.02.88)

Jonathan Jackson (Leander Club/Henley-on-Thames/02.06.95)*

Jamie Kirkwood (Leander Club/Newcastle/30.08.89)

Zak Lee-Green (Agecroft RC/Cardiff/06.02.91)

Samuel Mottram (Leander Club/Stoke Mandeville/14.11.94)*

Sam Tuck (Molesey BC/Peterborough/26.07.93)

PAIR

Bowside

Chris Bartley (Leander Club/Wrexham/02.02.84)

Peter Chambers (Oxford Brookes Univ/Coleraine/14.03.90)

Sam Scrimgeour (Imperial College BC/Kirriemuir/28.01.88)

Charles Waite-Roberts (Leander Club/Basingstoke/06.11.92)

Strokeside

Mark Aldred (London RC/Birmingham/18/04.87)

Joel Cassells (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Coleraine/15.06.94)*

Jonathan Clegg (Leander Club/Maidenhead/14.07.89)

Jamie Copus (Oxford Brookes Univ BC/Oxford/30.01.93)

WOMEN

SINGLE

Maddie Arlett (Edinburgh Univ BC/Selkirk/07.06.94)*

Kat Copeland (Tees RC/Stockton-on-Tees/01.12.90)

Emily Craig (Univ of London BC/Mark Cross/30.11.92)

Gemma Hall (Wallingford RC/Wargrave/10.04.92)

Robyn Hart-Winks (Edinburgh Univ BC/Kirriemuir/07.10.93)

Ellie Lewis (Agecroft RC/Marlow/14.04.94)

Eleanor Piggott (Wallingford RC/Bedford/16.05.91)

Fran Rawlins (Leander Club/Uckfield/08.07.86)

Brianna Stubbs (Wallingford RC/Poole/13.07.91)

Charlotte Taylor (Putney Town RC/Bedford/14.08.85)

Imogen Walsh (London RC/Inverness/17.01.84)

COXES

MEN

Henry Fieldman (Molesey BC/Barnes/25.11.88)

Phelan Hill (Leander Club/Bedford/21.07.79)

WOMEN

Zoe De Toledo (Leander Club/London/17.07.87)

Matilda Horn (Univ of London BC/Windsor/16.

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With six months to go to the Rio Games, Great Britain remains ambitious to maintain its place as the leading rowing nation.

This week, members of the GB Rowing Team are facing a battery of challenges set by the coaches and performance staff as the process to select the Rio 2016 line-ups continues.

“We all want to be on that start line under the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio,” said Alex Gregory London 2012 Champion in the men’s four.

“It gets more and more intense and more and more exciting as it gets to six months out, then suddenly it’s three months, then one month and soon it’ll be just weeks and days we’re talking about,” said Katherine Grainger, four times an Olympic medallist including gold in London.

“Every day becomes a battle for those Olympic places and there are not enough to go round.”

“The Olympics, for a sport like rowing, is the absolute pinnacle.  Every athlete of any calibre wants to be there,” said Sir David Tanner, 91ÌÒɫ’s Performance Director.  “We are ambitious as a team and everyone is working hard.”

Pete Reed, already a double Olympic Champion, has talked of the internal pressure but also the way that the team is bonding together.

“What I have been most pleased with so far this winter is that the team is just so close,” he said.

“We have bonded as a heavyweight men’s team, and actually as a whole team, like never before in my experience – and I’ve been through a lot of teams now.

“That makes a big difference. I think the success of previous years has got a lot to do with it. We’re doing well as a squad and that encourages us to push on and train hard.”

Richard Chambers, winner of lightweight men’s four silver in London said:  “The level of racing within the squad, because we are a successful nation, is immense.  It’s almost as tough as racing internationally”.

His 2015 lightweight men’s double scull partner Will Fletcher said: “This week’s testing is some of the toughest that any of the team will ever face.  It is brutal.”

For Alan Campbell, winner of 2012 single scull bronze and one of four rowers from the town of Coleraine, who are battling for Olympic seats, the Rio Games could also feel like a “home Games.”

“My wife’s father is a Carioca, having been raised on Ipanema in Rio,” Campbell explained.

“He is now living in England but my wife still has family in Brazil and it would be very special for me to compete there feeling like a second home Olympics.”

Campbell has rowed on the natural lake – located just minutes from Ipanema Beach and overlooked by the Christ the Redeemer statue – during his visits to Brazil.

“The Lagoa is a very special venue, probably the most iconic I have visited and had the pleasure to train on,” he added.

“Rio itself is probably my favourite city in the world after London and the Brazilians that I met were amazing and very kind to me.”

“I am confident the Rio Olympics will be a first-class experience, not just for the athletes but also supporters coming to be part of the 2016 Games. I can’t wait to get going.”

Rowers, through their team doctor and TeamGB guidance, are also keeping an eye on the Zika virus situation and have compassion for those affected.

Grainger recently told the BBC, who will broadcast the Games and the preceding rowing European Championships, and two world cups in Lucerne and Poznan:  “”I think it is important to keep informed but not to raise the fear factor,” she said.

JĂŒrgen Gröbler, Chief Coach for Open Men, has also spoken about this being the most difficult time of the four year cycle.

“If I look at the medals and gold medals won by the open men’s squad in the last few years in the Olympic and non-Olympic events at World level, it is so difficult to separate the rowers.  There are always more people than seats and to look a medal-winning athlete in the eye and tell them that they haven’t made it is the hardest thing. It never gets easier.

Young people put their lives on hold especially in a sport like rowing where there are generally no riches to be won, it is all about the pride of being an Olympic medallist.”

Great Britain closed out the 2012 Olympic regatta with four golds, two silvers and three bronzes – a best ever.  Rowing is the nation’s most continuously successful Olympic sport with a gold at every Games since 1984.

In London, 28 rowers in nine boat classes won medals and all 47 rowers made the Olympic final in front of record crowds at Eton-Dorney.

After the 2012 success, the sport experienced a surge of interest and 91ÌÒÉ« is already planning for a similar post-Rio glow.

For those oar-inspired by events in Rio 2016 there’ll be an opportunity to try rowing at local clubs across the country during the Games. But if you want to give it a go before then this website has a dedicated ‘Go rowing’ area that provides newcomers, as well as those dusting off old kit, the information they need to get started – Go Rowing Section.

British Rowers will be getting help over the next six months to help make the boat go faster from Science in Sport, SAS Analytics and the Berkshire Independent Hospital alongside its major funder, the National Lottery.

For media enquiries about this article contact the GB Rowing Team press office via:  The GB Rowing Team Press Office

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